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Portland Liberals Reject Fluoridated Water On Libertarian Grounds

Many of us Oregonians never expected this, but last week a coalition of Democrats, Republicans, Libertarians, Constitutionalists, Pacific Greens, Independents and even Pirate Party members (yes, a real political party in Oregon) came together to reject a statist mandate to add fluoride to our pristine mountain water. And the vote wasn't even close:

For the fourth time since 1956, Portlanders on Tuesday night rejected a plan to fluoridate city water, 60 percent to 40 percent.

"There's a libertarian component to Oregon politics ... a kind of opposition to what the establishment might want," said Bill Lunch, a political science professor at Oregon State University. "Those who have more money, despite the kind of popular presumptions in this regard, don't always win elections."

Both campaigns accused the other of stealing yard signs. A thinly veiled anti-fluoride push poll went out to voters. Opponents were described as insensitive to equity issues, while proponents were accused of wanting to willingly pollute the city's famously pure water.

The issue also wound up politicizing a statewide health report that showed falling cavity and tooth decay rates in the state over the past five years. One of the report's authors said she felt pressured by Upstream Health, the group spearheading fluoridation, to present the findings in a certain way.

In the opinion of many, especially in light of the study showing falling cavity rates among Portland children, the expense of fluoridating Portland's water seemed like a solution in search of a problem. Maybe for those who live in other large metro areas, this seems like a no-brainer - after all, most large water systems have been fluoridated for decades. And of course, this was about the chiiiiillllldrrreeennnnn. This progressive blogger was shocked by the results, capturing the mood of many Portland elites:

The fact is that fluoridation would have helped protect kids by increasing dental health.

The fear based campaign waged by Clean Water Portland was upsetting enough but the often heard statement by those who identify as progressives that putting fluoride in the water violated their personal choice to take fluoride was perhaps more upsetting. Portland has never been about “me!” but about “us!” Not so this week. The common good lost out to a growing libertarianism that in this case put the needs of children last when they should have gone first. That children should come first is a bedrock principle of my faith.

But when faced with a unique opportunity to choose whether this would remain voluntary or become a mandate for all consumers of city water, Portlanders overwhelmingly voted to maintain individual choice when it comes to adding chemicals to their bodies.

Now if only they could come together and realize that the same argument about personal choice applies to Obamacare.

The cracks are beginning to show in the Democratic Party over one of the most unpopular provisions of Obamacare. Today Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia said he would support a delay of the individual mandate if it was part of a spending deal. “There’s no way I could not vote for it,” Manchin said at a Bloomberg Government breakfast today. “It’s very reasonable and sensible.”

Portland, Oregon likes to fancy itself as ahead of the curve, and more educated than your average city. We're routinely listed as among the most wired cities in the nation, and typically have a more educated workforce than most. Our biggest mission, it seems, is to become the greenest city imaginable. But our government leaves a lot to be desired, with liberal pipe dreams dominating over such considerations as reality and common sense.

In today's podcast, FreedomWorks Vice President of Health Care Policy Dean Clancy and conservative commentator Michelle Malkin discussed the executive order signed by Presidential candidate and Governor of Texas Rick Perry, mandating immunizations of Gardasil to sixth grade girls to prevent the spread of HPV and related cancers.

I’d like to bring your attention to a few interesting articles from recent days which argue strongly against the Democrats’ so-called “reform” of our health care system, particularly if you are not very old or sick: